I hope to see you over there. It already seems to be better. I can post more music widgets and things in the blogs and it’s mine! Stop by, make comments, download things, whatever. I’m too legit to quit and I’m in charge now. Well, at least with some things.

Between 1996 and 1998 I put down a few songs in a rather spur of the moment on my 4-track recorder. Lyrics were made up basically on the spot while the tape was rolling. The sounds are pretty lo-fi and the clanging of metal in some of the songs were spoons, pots and pans that made up our primitive percussion. Jim Seagroves helped out on the racket kitchen percussion sounds as well as general chanting or making a nuisance out of everything.

Back then Jim and I called ourselves “the Gidds”. Basically, it was our little gang name growing up. We listened to NWA in high school and wanted to be white thugs. We had our own language and mockerized the neighborhood. Some of the songs we speak in German.

I play the acoustic and electric guitar, sitar and sing the songs. My brother Bob Guittard played bass and guitar on a few tracks as well as beat on a hand drum. Warren Barry played the organ on Once Around the Moon as well as added to the weirdness.

I used a Dr. Groove Drum machine. I hope you like these weird songs. At the time of the recording I was listening to a lot of Beck’s Odelay. Please enjoy and make comments.

1. Are you burdened by student loans that force you to work jobs you really do not like so that you can pay it back?

2. Are you underneath a mortgage on a home?

3. Do you pay loans are your car?

4. Are you able to get up and go anywhere you want?

5. Do you bring your work home with you? (If you enjoy your work, then that’s a different story).

6. Are you so obsessed with the latest gadgets and things?

7. Do you have a lot of credit card debt?

8. Are you happy and satisfied or at least moving towards what you perceive to get you there?

9. Would you keep working your job for free because you like it?

10. Are you doing overtime just to stay afloat and not go into the tank?

11. Do you have free time to do the things you enjoy?

12. When was the last time you got up and felt you were really making a difference?

13. Are you burdened down with fear?

14. Are you too busy?

Solutions:

Don’t watch T.V.
Rent or share a home with someone.
Stop buying things.
Quit your job and do something worthwhile.
Turn on, tune in and drop out. 🙂
Take some risks.
Do your part.
Become self-reliant.
Create yourself, do not let others create you.
Resist greed, anxiety, depression and fear.
Help others.

Now if you’re buried under debt and such, I wouldn’t suggest turning on tuning in and dropping out but I’d suggest really finding out what makes you happy and to move in that direction at least. It has been a long road for me and I’m still working on it and I’m rather on the debt free side but just looking for my niche that is helpful to society and to me.

I told my uncle once that if it takes me 50 years to get there, then it takes me 50 years to get there.

Music and art can change our World for the good. You already know how chaotic it is these days if you are awake: Swine Flu hype, G20 Riots, Vaccinations, Nuclear Standoffs, RFID chips, health care arguments, economy, Iraq War, terrorism, the New World Order, 1st amendment violations, unemployment, and the list can go on and on.

Now if we all rise up together we can push the oppressive things out of the way. I have compiled a Jamendo only playlist of artists I really like because of their honesty and musical quality. Please download at the link below and pass around. We can do this. It isn’t over and as long as we are breathing we can do something.

And here is another idea: If you can play guitar or piano, sing or write, get going and make a song about whatever you are going through. No matter what. Flood the internet with your viewpoint. Let’s not give in to the elite bullies in charge who want to manipulate, con and destroy us with their fear-mongering. These are all distractions.

if you paint or draw do that, too. Flood the internet with your world. We have more numbers behind us than those elite. They hide behind their power and wealth. Come and get going.

I arrived to Portland via Bulgaria, a rather long route but in my observations it seems to be a really swell and friendly town. Quite amazing really.

Compared to Bulgaria or Texas the public transport was pleasant. The riders did not have their heads down. They were actually talking to each other. And the bus driver said, “have a nice day” to nearly every person that exited the bus. It was almost comical.

One lady who exited apparently was carrying bread in a sack. The bus driver yelled through the door to the outside to see where lady bought her bread. And she did not hear him and so he kept asking.

What is the deal with Texas?!? I have lived there most of my life and have never had this pleasant experience. People in general keep to themselves.

Another kid on the Portland bus was talking about being kicked out of house in Texas and running away, etc. And he kept saying he just wants to be himself. Is it so difficult for parents or family to understand this?? Texas to me seems so rigid and opinionated. Hey, post some comments. Let’s get it out there.

I’m tired of facing the same crap every single time I go back to Texas.

Once upon a time there was an idiot. The idiot began to lose his mind. He forgot his name so he signed up to go to school. At school, he learned to curse, throw paper, and yell. It was fun for him. But then one day, the teacher gave him bad marks and he went home crying to his parents. His parents forgave him and he went back to school and became the class clown. As class clown, he ruled over the classroom like a king. Everyone laughed and thought well of him. But the boy, constantly needed attention. His hysteria was a cover for his sad loneliness. One day, he forgot how to laugh. He lost all purpose as did his followers. Now he lives like a slave to his own fears and stupidity. He’s come full circle and is an idiot again.

Today, I was riding a city bus in Sofia, Bulgaria. The buses are fairly old but that doesn’t bother me. My girlfriend and I had been walking in the rain with umbrellas and got on.

We got on and I casually noticed an old man walking past me for the exit of bus at the back. I didn’t think much more about him until about two minutes had passed. My girlfriend and I had punched our tickets and were sitting. As we were sitting, I heard some screaming that sounded muffled or not very loud. I looked around and saw that the old man was stuck in the bus exit. His head was the only part that was out of the bus. The door was completely shut.

I immediately stood up and went to see if I could open the door. The man was screaming outside the closed door. I screamed at my girlfriend and she and other Bulgarians screamed to “Stop the Bus,” and to “Open the door.”

The bus stopped and the door was opened and the old man jumped off immediately to the rain and I suppose was okay. I was rather disturbed by seeing this. Makes you think about everything around you and to be on guard.

What is so great about familiar things? Doesn’t it just keep us in a stagnant state of being? There are those who sit in their back yard and gaze at the birds feeding. Some people live through the experiences of what others do. They are too afraid to leave their back yard or the painfully comfort surroundings they live in. Or they are too tied down to obligation. Obligations to American Idol, the latest gossip, etc. Whatever.

For me, I’ve got to get out of my back yard. I can’t stand it maybe. I feel as if my life is a waste if I stick with the familiar. What is the point really in sitting around and not having adventures? I don’t know. I make up my life as I go. It has always been like this. Am I a freak for wanting adventure or change? Is it a crime to be idealistic? Is it stupid to rise above the brainwashing skepticism of the World?

The world is what I make it. It’s about self-reliance, independence, and faith. Have we lost all this? Must we rely on Government or Obama to solve our problems?

Suggestion: Get out of your back yard. There’s a whole world out there.

The Blog Documenting the Life Of Jim Guittard

4th Generation Musician and 2nd Generation Writer.
Disclaimer:
MP3s on this site are for sampling purposes only. If you are an artist or represent an artist featured on this site and would like a file removed write me at jfguittard (at) juno (dot) com.